Turkey Stuffed Peppers

Here is a recipe for Turkey Stuffed Peppers that involves very little effort but delivers loads of unique flavor. It features perfectly cooked bell peppers that melt in your mouth, and a filling that combines lean ground turkey with rice, olives and flavorful spices. Topped with salty feta and herbs, these easy stuffed peppers are a crowd-pleasing dish you can make on a weeknight or serve to guests on special evenings.

Stuffed peppers are a brilliant way to use up a surplus of peak season sweet bell peppers. They will serve a crowd and leftovers make weeks-worth of lunches. This recipe calls for very little chopping and the fragrant meat mixture comes together fast.

With a distinct Mediterranean flair, the filling for these peppers is a hearty combination of ground turkey, onion, garlic, tomatoes, rice blend, feta, and olives. Spiced with oregano, cumin, and paprika it is completely irresistible, even without the peppers.

I believe pre-roasting the peppers is key to getting them perfectly soft and tender, without falling apart. Once stuffed, they take another trip back into the oven to roast again until the filling is heated through and the peppers have become intensely sweet and slightly charred on the edges, a mere 15 minutes or so.

Smoky, tender, healthy, and heaping with their fragrant filling, these turkey stuffed peppers have the perfect exchange of flavour and combination of textures. So, so good and perfect for a fairly quick weeknight dinner that the entire family will love.

You can easily adapt this recipe to suit your taste and you will find lots of suggestions in this post. Best of all, you can prepare everything a day ahead and bake just before serving. How great is that?

Ingredient Notes

The majority of ingredients for this turkey stuffed peppers recipe are pantry staples so don’t let the somewhat long list dissuade you from making them.

• Bell peppers – I like to use the sweeter red bell peppers but yellow or orange bell peppers are just as good. You can also use green peppers, or a mix, if you prefer. This recipe calls for 4 large peppers. If you use 3 you will have a quite a bit of filling leftover. In this case, you can freeze the leftover filling for a later use. You can also use 6 small peppers.
• Ground turkey – I like to use lean ground turkey since it contains a good amount of protein but is lower in saturated fat than ground beef.
• Extra virgin olive oil – For coating the peppers and for cooking the filling.
• Onion and garlic – This recipe calls for 1 diced onion and 4 garlic cloves. You can replace the garlic cloves with 2 tsp. garlic powder if you wish to keep things easier.
• Spices and seasoning – I like to use oregano, cumin, paprika and a pinch of cayenne or red pepper flakes pepper (the latter is optional – but adds a little complexity without making the filling spicy). The filling also benefits from a generous seasoning of salt and black pepper.
• Canned tomatoes – You can use fresh tomatoes but to keep it simple I used canned diced tomatoes. I really like this brand. If the canned tomatoes you have are very thick, add a few tablespoons of extra water to the mix.
• Tomato paste – Just a tablespoon for a little more depth of flavour.
• Rice – I had some cooked wild rice blend leftover in the fridge so that is what I used. You can absolutely use any other cooked grain you like such as brown rice, long grain white rice, quinoa, freekeh, farro or cauliflower rice. However, if you don’t have a pre-cooked grain on hand, choose one that cooks quickly such as quinoa or white rice.
• Kalamata olives – I love olives so I throw them in but leave them out if they aren’t your thing.
• Feta – These stuffed peppers are certainly tasty enough not to need any cheese. But hey, a little salty cheese is always a bonus.
• Fresh parsley – Any fresh herbs will add a little brightness to this stuffed pepper dish. I used chopped parsley but mint, oregano, or dill would also be great.

Variations

This stuffed pepper recipe is endlessly adaptable. Here’s a few suggestions:

• Make them vegan: Omit the ground turkey and feta and brown a bit of tempeh or tofu instead. You can also add some chopped toasted walnuts and/or sautéed garlicky mushrooms.
• Different seasoning: To season the filling, you could use an Italian seasoning blend, or any other seasonings you’d like.
• Add some greens: I love to add chopped baby spinach to the filling. Unfortunatley, I was all out and due to stay at home orders, I didn’t dash out to grab some. Also great with chopped kale or chard.
• Add nuts: Again, I thought I had pine nuts but refrained from running out to get them. I love the crunch and flavour of pine nuts in the stuffed peppers, but walnuts or almonds would also be good.
• Use a different ground meat: Replace the ground turkey with lean ground beef, chicken, or lamb.
• Use a different cheese: I love salty feta with these stuffed peppers, but a melty mozzarella, cheddar cheese or goat cheese, would also be fabulous. Grated parmesan cheese is another favourite.

How To Cut And Prepare The Peppers

You can cut the peppers any way you like but here are my suggestions on how to cut and prepare them so they make the best vessel for the turkey filling:

Cut the peppers: I like slicing the peppers in half lengthwise, as opposed to cutting off the top. They are much easier to stuff this way, won’t topple over when roasted, are easier to eat, and easier to store if you have leftovers.

Prepare the peppers: Once peppers are cut horizontally, cut out the membrane (white centre) and remove the seeds. Leave the stem attached which helps keep the peppers sturdy and prevents them from collapsing too much when cooked.

How to Make Ground Turkey Stuffed Peppers

The trick to making this dish a weeknight-friendly meal, is to prepare your filling while the peppers pre-roast in the oven. Once stuffed, the peppers will be ready in just 15 minutes, or less.

1. Pre-roast the peppers. Drizzle olive oil over the cut peppers and use your hands to coat the insides and outsides. Arrange peppers cut-side up in a rimmed baking sheet. (Line the baking sheet with parchment paper for easier cleanup.) Roast until tender but not browned, about 15-20 minutes.
2. Make the filling. Sauté onion until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds more. Add in the ground turkey, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon. Season with spices. Continue cooking until turkey is evenly browned, about 5 minutes. Mix in the tomatoes, tomato paste, and 1/2 cup water. Cook for another 5 minutes, or until tomatoes have cooked down. Remove from heat and add the cooked wild rice blend (or other grain) and Kalamata olives, if using. Mix well to combine.
3. Stuff the peppers. Remove the roasted peppers from the oven and stuff peppers with turkey mixture. Sprinkle with feta cheese, or other cheese, and transfer the peppers to a baking dish where they will fit snuggly (a 9×13″ dish will work great).
4. Roast the stuffed peppers. Transfer baking dish to the oven and roast the stuffed peppers for 15-20 minutes, or until the edges of the bell peppers appear slightly charred.
5. Note: You can roast the stuffed peppers in the same baking sheet you used to pre-roast the peppers. However, I like to roast the stuffed peppers in a deeper roasting pan which prevents the filling from drying or spilling out.

*A reminder that the full recipe with measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card below!

A Few Tips

• Leave the stem on the peppers. This will help keep the peppers sturdy and prevent them from collapsing too much when cooked.
• Don’t skip pre-cooking the peppers. You really want your stuffed peppers to be tender and slightly smoky when you eat them. Pre-roasting the peppers for about 15 minutes will to prevent the stuffing from getting over-cooked.
• Use a pre-cooked grain, or a quick-cooking grain. The filling for these stuffed peppers comes together fairly fast. Using leftover cooked grains from a previous day is a great shortcut. Otherwise, choose a quick-cooking grain—quinoa would be a great option.
• Season the filling generously. If your filling tastes good outside of the pepper, it will taste even better once inside. If it tastes bland, it will still be bland once inside the pepper. Make sure to taste it and season it well before you stuff your peppers.
• Don’t lose the pepper juices! When you pull the un-stuffed, pre-roasted peppers out of the oven you will notice the juices have pooled on the inside. Don’t tip the peppers over or you will lose those juices. Once you stuff the peppers, the filling will drink in all those delicious juices becoming even more flavourful.
• Pack the peppers! The filling will shrink considerably while cooking so be sure to really get that filling into every nook and cranny of your pepper. Otherwise, you will have a lot of leftover filling and peppers that don’t look very stuffed at all.

What to Serve With Turkey Stuffed Peppers

How To Make Ahead, Store And Freeze

The peppers can be assembled and baked the next day: Pre-roast the peppers, stuff them, then place in the refrigerator, tightly covered, to bake the next day. Another option is to bake the stuffed peppers, then store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, tightly covered, and reheat as needed.

Alternatively, you can prepare and cook the peppers and filling, then store separately in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Then simply assemble and roast the stuffed peppers when ready to use.

To store: Place the cooled baked stuffed peppers in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

To re-heat:  Place peppers in a pre-heated, 400ºF oven for about 15-20 minutes. You can also microwave them in a covered dish, for a few minutes or until heated through.

To Freeze: Allow the baked peppers to cool completely, then place in a freezer-safe container. The stuffed peppers will freeze well for up to 2 months. Thaw them overnight in your fridge before baking in a preheated 400ºF oven for about 20 minutes. Alternatively, transfer the peppers directly from the freezer to a pre-heated oven, adding at least 15 more minutes of roasting time.

Other Favorite Weeknight Suppers

• Pan Seared Scallops with Lemon Pasta
• Baked Lemon Chicken Thighs
• Black Pepper Chicken Stir-Fry

If  you give these Turkey Stuffed Peppers a try, please feel free to leave a comment and/or a star rating below. We appreciate and welcome all your feedback. Thank you!